HOMILY FOR THE 19TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR C
THEME: Remaining Faithful and Focused in the Midst of Storms
BY: Fr. Luke Ijezie
HOMILY FOR SUNDAY AUGUST 7 2022
Wisdom 18:6-9
Psalm 33:1,12,18-22
Hebrews 11:1-2,8-19 or 11:1-2, 8-12
Luke 12:32-48
What sustains our life most is the trust we have in God’s power to save us at all times. Without this trust we drown with every storm. It is only the one who has faith and confidence in God that can withstand any form of crisis. This idea is present in all the readings of this 19th Sunday of the year.
The first reading from Wisdom 18:6-9 argues from a sapiential perspective, which is an argument from experience, that the same events that save the virtuous are the events that ruin the wicked and oppressors. The same plagues that menaced the Egyptians were the same factors that facilitated the liberation of the people of Israel. So when such terrible events come, the faithful ones should remain focused and hold their heads high. The same stone that lifts some up can also become a stumbling block to others. The fact is that God takes care of those who trust in Him, as the psalmist of today’s Psalm 33 says. He keeps them alive in famine. So they remain happy whose God is the Lord. They can always take consolation in the fact that their help is in the name of the Lord who made heaven and earth.
The second reading from Hebrews 11 stresses the same point. Faith makes us courageous as we keep our eyes focused on God from whom all good things flow. So nothing can really bend us.
Jesus, thus, encourages us in today’s Gospel from Luke 12:32-48 not to be afraid and not to worry. As a matter of fact, fear destroys everything, including our trust in God. The consciousness that we have a faithful, all-powerful and loving God should make us relaxed in the face of every crisis. The important thing is to remain focused on our vocation and different divinely given assignments. God knows how to protect His own.
As we listen to these words, we cannot forget that our lives are today menaced from all directions. Sometimes, the directions we think are more friendly present the greatest threats. Our family problems and problems of health and wholeness incline us to derail and to abandon our faith and trust in God. We then begin to cut corners and to negotiate with the diabolical forces. The consequences are, of course, very disastrous. Yes, trials must come, but our faith can withstand all if we truly surrender to God. Scripture tells us, “All things work together for good to them that love God, and to them that are called according to His purpose” (Rom 8:28).
May God continue to save us from the evils that threaten us and our society!
Fr. Luke Ijezie